District of Columbia Federation of Civic Associations, Inc.

Resolution

“In Support of Public Input and Transparency, with Regard to the Budget for the District of Columbia Public Schools”

WHEREAS: the Chairman of District of Columbia City Council, at the request of the Mayor, has introduced legislation in the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Support Act (Section 4031 et seq of B17-678) that would repeal D.C. Code 38-917; and

WHEREAS: D.C. Code 38-917, which was overwhelmingly approved by citizen initiative in 1987, requires DCPS and the Mayor to prepare a draft DCPS budget prior to submitting a budget to the Council, and to hold public hearings on the proposed DCPS budget – a DCPS hearing to be held at the start of the budget process, and a Mayoral hearing to be held after the DCPS draft budget has been submitted to the Mayor; and

WHEREAS: for the past 20 years, DCPS budget hearings have served as an opportunity for parent and community involvement at critical junctures in the budget process; and

WHEREAS: major decisions pertaining to public schools should be made only with the full benefit of public input, with information released and input invited early in the decision-making process; and

WHEREAS: the Director for Education, Workforce, and Income Security for the Government Accountability Office urged the District of Columbia Public Schools at a Senate Committee oversight hearing on March 14, 2008, "Bring in stakeholders not just to comment or hear about plans but to be at the ground level developing the plans"; and

WHEREAS: during the 2008 fiscal year, for the first time, DCPS refused to release a detailed proposed budget before the mayor's budget hearing, arguing that it is no longer required to do so.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, this 23^rd day of April 2008, that the District of Columbia Federation of Civic Associations, Inc. urges the Council of the District of Columbia to reject the Mayor's proposal to end Mayoral and Chancellor budget hearings for the District of Columbia Public Schools (Section 4031 of the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Support Act); and the District of Columbia Federation of Civic Associations, Inc. respectfully urges the Council of the District of Columbia to enact legislation to clarify that the level of detail that had been required of the Board of Education's proposed budget is now required of the Chancellor's proposed budget and future submitted budgets.